D.W.I. Still Wearing His World Cup Jersey

A native of Colombia who spent Saturday night celebrating his nation’s World Cup victory against Uruguay that day wound up on a gurney outside East Hampton Town Justice Court Sunday morning following his arraignment on a charge of drunken driving.

Christhian Eduardo Roa, 30, was pulled over on Montauk Highway at 5:30 a.m. Sunday for swerving across lane lines. East Hampton Town police said he failed roadside sobriety tests, and he was taken to their Wainscott headquarters, where his breath test reportedly produced a reading of .14 of 1 percent.

Still wearing his World Cup Colombia jersey in court hours later, he told Justice Lisa R. Rana he was an architect, in the United States on vacation. He had been staying in Springs with friends for the past five months, he said, and was about to fly home.

She asked him what his cellphone number was. He said he could not remember it.

“You have no ties to the community, no family here, you don’t know your own phone number, and you’re about to fly home. That all adds up to your being a flight risk,” Justice Rana said as she set bail at $2,000. “So I can go home when I post bail?” he asked. “You cannot leave until this case is completed,” he was told.

He spoke softly to the court translator, Ana Kestler, telling her he felt faint, which she repeated to Justice Rana. Almost simultaneously, Mr. Roa collapsed, toppling backward.

He regained consciousness after a few minutes and was brought water. He sat on the floor for a brief time, then was helped to a chair. “Has this ever happened to you before?” Justice Rana asked. Mr. Roa nodded. “You might want to get this checked out. How are you? Are you okay?” He answered yes, but the decision was made to call for an ambulance.

After treatment at the hospital he was released to the police, who took him back to headquarters. He was freed later that day when his friends posted the bail.

Two vehicles collided on Pantigo Road Sunday evening not far from Justice Court, and one of the drivers was charged with drunken driving. East Hampton Village police said Camilo Andres Angel-Cabrera’s westbound Nissan Pathfinder had veered into the path of an eastbound BMW at about 9:30 p.m.

Mr. Angel-Cabrera was standing by the Pathfinder when police arrived. According to the report, he acknowledged having caused the accident and said he had been drinking earlier. Back at Cedar Street headquarters, his blood-alcohol level was found to be .20, high enough to trigger an aggravated charge of driving while intoxicated.

Justice Rana set bail the next morning at $500, which was posted by the defendant’s sister and mother, who were in the courtroom for his arraignment. Mr. Angel-Cabrera also faces charges of driving without a license or insurance.

Cory James Hartt of Northport, 23, was arrested by town police early Sunday morning after being pulled over, they said, for speeding. His father, who was in the courtroom later that morning, posted the $500 bail set by Justice Rana.

Olivie Ramirez, 38, of Brooklyn was at the wheel of a 2014 Ford on Amagansett’s Main Street early on June 24 when town police pulled him over for driving without taillights. He failed field tests, they said, and refused to take the breath test when brought to police headquarters. “No. I mean, no,” he reportedly told police.

Bail was set at $500, and was posted.

Garrett T. Virtue, 23, of Rye, N.Y., was driving a 2014 Jeep when he was pulled over on Napeague Saturday night. Police said his blood-alcohol level was .19, meaning he faced an elevated misdemeanor charge, aggravated drunken driving. He was released on $500 bail, which his father posted the next morning.

William W. Huffman, who told the court he splits his time between the Lower East Side and his employer’s house in East Hampton, was released without bail Monday morning after being charged with misdemeanor D.W.I.

New York State troopers are now patrolling Montauk during the overnight hours. They have made three drunken-driving arrests in the past two weeks.

Justin Flores, 36, of Shirley was charged after being pulled over on Flamingo Road June 21. Brian J. Moreno-Navarro, 28, of Biscayne, Fla., was arrested June 22 after almost hitting a marked state police car on Main Street. Troopers said he had been speeding at the time. The third man charged was Giancarlo Cervantes, 27, of Sag Harbor, who was arrested on Edgemere Road when, troopers said, he veered over onto the shoulder right in front of them.

The state officers released all three bail, but with future dates in East Hampton Town Justice Court.

About the Author

T.E. McMorrow began freelancing for The Star in 2009, before coming on staff, full time, at the end of 2011. He is a member of the Drama Desk in New York. His book, “Nutcracker in Harlem,” illustrated by James Ransome, is scheduled for publication in the fall of 2017 by HarperCollins children’s division.